Chapter 33 Chapter Thirty-Three

One hot afternoon at the end of June, almost a month after I returned the stone, my mother brought me a newspaper and showed me an article entitled "Iwamura Electric Company Receives Funding from Mitsubishi Bank."The article said that the coalition occupation authorities have changed the handling of Iwamura Electric, from which level to which level. "The fortunes of Iwamura Denki have been completely reversed," Mom said. "No wonder we have heard a lot from Yan Junhe these days. You must know that he has offered to be your Dana. Now I know why you have been talking about it these past few weeks. Restless! Well, you can relax. It's finally here. We all know how much Nobu likes you all these years."

I continued to stare at the table like a dignified daughter.But I believe that I must have a pained expression on my face, because after a while, my mother said again: "You can't be so listless when Nobu wants you to go to bed. Maybe your body is not right. I will see you off after you come back from heaven. Go see the doctor." My mother then told me that the hostess of Ikritei Tea House received a call from the Iwamura Electric Company that morning, saying that she was going to Amami for vacation next weekend.Me, Mameha, and Pumpkin are all invited. "But Mom...that's impossible," I said, "Going to God for the weekend? It's a whole day just by boat."

"That's not the case. Iwamura Electric has arranged for you to fly there." On Friday morning, we took the train to Osaka.Then take the minibus from Osaka Station to the airport. The men were already on the plane, talking business in the tail seat.In addition to the chairman and Nobu, the minister was also there, and there was an elderly man who I later found out was the branch president of Mitsubishi Bank. After the plane took off, I drew the curtains and read a magazine, and soon Mameha fell asleep beside me.I looked up and saw Nobu was standing in the aisle. "Sayuri, are you okay?" He said softly so as not to wake Mameha.

"Mr. Yan has never asked me that before," I said. "He must be in a very happy mood." "The future is brighter than ever!" Mameha was awakened by our conversation, so Nobu said nothing more and walked down the aisle to go to the toilet.Before opening the door, he turned around and glanced at where the other men were sitting.For a brief moment, I saw him from a new perspective, and thought he had a particularly focused look.When his eyes flickered towards me, I thought he might have caught a trace of worry on my face. I was worried about my future, but he was full of confidence in the future.When I thought about it, it was strange that Nobu didn't know me very well.Of course, a geisha should not count on Dana's understanding either.Besides, Nobu only sees me as a geisha, and my real self is carefully hidden, so how could he possibly understand me?If it was Nobu who found me by the Shirakawa stream that day, what would he do?Of course he just walked right by... I would have had a much easier life that way.I will not miss the chairman every night, I will not go to the cosmetics store to smell the talcum powder in the air again and again, recall his skin, and I will not try to imagine that somewhere, he is by my side.If you ask me, why do I need these things, I will answer, why do ripe persimmons taste good?Why does burning wood smell burnt?

A moment later, the toilet door opened and the lights went out.I think my pain must be clearly and unmistakably on the face.I didn't want Nobu to see me like this, so I leaned my head against the window and pretended to sleep.After he passed, I opened my eyes.I found that my motion against the window had drawn the curtains aside, and I looked out of the window for the first time since takeoff.Below is a blue-green ocean, vast and boundless, with spots of emerald green mottled in it. I had a horrible thought: I saw myself cutting the ties of fate to Noon and watching him fall all the way into the ocean below.

I suddenly knew what to do.Of course I didn't really want to throw Nobu overboard, but I suddenly understood something, and knew how to end my relationship with him forever.I don't want to lose his friendship, but I'm trying to get closer to the chairman, and Nobu is an obstacle that I can't get around.It was Nobu himself who told me what to do, just a few weeks ago, the night he cut his hand at Ichiriting tea house, he said that if I was the kind of woman who would give myself to the minister, he wanted me immediately Get out of the house and never speak to me again. When I think about it, I feel... like a sudden high fever, and I feel wet all over.I'm glad Mameha was still asleep next to me, otherwise she would definitely be wondering what happened when she saw me panting and wiping my forehead with my fingertips.I have this idea, but can I do this kind of thing?But can I do this to Nobu?To repay his love in such a terrible way?Compared to the men who have made geisha suffer for years, Nobu may be a very desirable danna.But can I bear to live a life of perpetual hopelessness?For weeks I've been trying to convince myself I can, but can I?I think, I probably understand why Hatsumomo is so cruel and grandma is so stingy.Even Pumpkin, who was approaching thirty, had a look of disappointment on her face for years.The only reason I didn't become that was because I still had hope, and now would I do something disgusting to keep that hope alive?I'm not talking about seducing the minister, but about betraying Yeon's trust.

After breakfast the next day, we walked through the tropical jungle to the nearby sea cliff. The stream from our hotel flowed to the edge of the cliff, forming a small waterfall and rushing into the sea. The scene was picturesque.Looking down from the top of the mountain, the sea is like a wrinkled turquoise blanket with a touch of dark blue on top.In the afternoon, we walked on the dirt road in the small village and saw an old wooden house that looked like a warehouse, with a sloping roof covered with straw.We stopped, walked around to the back of the house, walked up a few stone steps, opened a door in the corner, and the sun shone on a wooden stage, covered with dust.Apparently it was used as a warehouse, but is now the village theater.When I first walked in, I hadn't thought of anything.But when the door was slammed shut, a picture suddenly flashed in my mind: the minister and I were lying on the uneven floor, the door creaked open, and the sun fell on us.We had nowhere to hide, and it was impossible for Nobu not to see us.

We came back over the hill to the hotel and I got my handkerchief out of my sleeve and fell behind the line.Of course it was hot on the road, with the afternoon sun hitting our faces, and it wasn't just me who was sweating.But Nobu came back and asked how I felt.I didn't know how to answer for a while, hoping that he thought it was due to too much fatigue from climbing the mountain. "Sayuri, you didn't look well all weekend. Maybe you should stay in Kyoto." "Then how can I see this beautiful island?" "I believe this is the farthest you have ever been from home, and now we are as far away from Kyoto as Hokkaido is from Kyoto."

Others have already rounded the turn ahead.Over Nobu's shoulder, I could see the eaves of the hotel under the leaves.I wanted to answer him, but I found myself circling the thought that had haunted me on the plane, that Nobu didn't understand me at all.Kyoto is not my home, nor is it where Nobuo said I was raised, where I never left.I stared at him in the hot sun and decided in a split second to do the thing that terrified me.I'm going to betray Yeon even though he's standing there looking at me affectionately.I tucked in the handkerchief with trembling hands, and we continued climbing without saying a word.

When I got to the room, the president and Mameha were sitting at the table with the bank president and playing Go.The glass door at the other end of the room was open, and the minister was looking out with his pillow on one arm, while with the other hand he was skinning a short walking stick he had brought back.I haven't figured out how to get the Minister to go to the theater with me, let alone how to get Nobu to find us there.Maybe Pumpkin would ask Nobuo for a walk if I asked her to? For a while, I sat on my knees and gazed at the leaves in the sun, wishing I could appreciate this beautiful tropical afternoon.I kept asking myself if I was sane when I planned this project.But whatever misgivings I had couldn't stop me from doing it.It was clear that as long as I didn't distract the Minister, nothing would happen, and when I did, I couldn't be noticed.

"Minister, if you have nothing to do," I said, "why don't you walk around the hotel with me? I'd love to look around, but I haven't been able to." Without waiting for his answer, I got up and walked out of the house.After a while, I was relieved when he came to meet me in the hall.We walked through the corridor silently and came to a corner. I looked around and stopped. "Minister, I beg your pardon," I said, "but . . . shall we go for another walk in the village together?" He looked puzzled. "We have over an hour left in the afternoon," I went on, "and it occurred to me that there was something I would very much like to have another look at." After a long silence, the minister said, "I have to go to the bathroom first." "Okay," I said to him, "you go to the toilet, and wait for me here when you're done, and we'll go for a walk together. Don't go anywhere until I come to you." The minister seemed to agree, and walked forward along the corridor.I go back to the house.I felt dizzy--now that my plan was in motion--I put my hand on the door, and when it pushed open, there seemed to be nothing between my fingers. The pumpkin was not at the table, and she was rummaging in her suitcase.I opened my mouth to speak, but no sound came out.I had to clear my throat and speak again. "Pumpkin, I want to ask you for help." I waited for her to say she would be happy to help me, but she just stared at me. "I don't think you would mind if I ask you..." "Go ahead," she said. "The Minister and I are going for a walk. I'll take him to the old theater and then..." "why?" "That way he and I can be alone." "Minister?" Pumpkin said in disbelief. "I'll explain later, but that's what I want you to do, I want you to take Nobuo there, and...pumpkin, that sounds weird, I want you to find us." "What do you mean, 'discover' you?" "I want you to find a way to get Nobu there and open that back door we saw earlier so...he can see us." "Sayuri, what are you doing?" she asked. "I don't have time to explain right now. Pumpkin, but it's very important. Seriously, my entire future is in your hands. Figure it out, as long as you and No--not the president, and no one else. You want me You can repay me any way you want.” She looked at me for a long time. "Pumpkin is going to help you again, isn't it?" she said.I wasn't sure what she meant by that, but she left without explaining. I'm not sure if Pumpkin agreed to help, but I can only count on her at the moment.I found the minister in the corridor and we walked down the hill together. "Minister, can you come in with me for a moment?" I said. He didn't seem to understand, but he followed me as I went up the passage to the side of the house.I climbed the stone steps and opened the door for him.He hesitated and went in.If he spends his whole life in Gion, of course he will understand what I mean.Because if a geisha leads a man to a remote place, she is putting her reputation in jeopardy, and the first-rate geisha will not do such a thing lightly.But the minister just stood on a sunny spot in the theater, as if waiting for a bus.I tucked the fan back into my belt, and my hands kept shaking, wondering if I could stick to the plan to the end.The simple act of closing the door took all my strength, and we stood in the bleak light that filtered through the eaves.The minister remained motionless, his face turned to a pile of straw mats in the corner of the stage. "Minister..." I said. My voice echoed in the small hall, and I lowered the volume afterwards. "I know you have talked to the hostess of Ikitei Tea House about me. Is that so?" He took a deep breath and said nothing. "Minister, if I may," I said, "I would like to tell you a story about Kazuyo, a geisha. She is no longer in Gion, but I used to know her very well. There is someone important—like you, Minister." ——Meet Kazuyo one night and liked her so much that he came to Gion to see her every night. A few months later, he offered to be Kazuyo's danna, but the hostess of the tea house apologized that it was impossible The man was very disappointed, but one afternoon Hedai took him to a secluded place, just the two of them. The place was very similar to this empty theater. She said to him... Even if he can't be her Dana... " As soon as I said the last sentence, the expression of the minister changed, as if the clouds scattered and the sun shone across the valley.He walked awkwardly towards me.My heart was pounding like a drum was beating in my ears.I couldn't help but look away from him and closed my eyes.When I opened my eyes again, the minister was already close at hand, we almost touched skin to skin, and I felt the wet flesh on his face was rubbing against my cheek. I lay down on the mat, which was not a tatami mat, but a rough woven straw mat, and I could feel the hard floor beneath.With one hand, I flipped the kimono and slip to one side, revealing them below the knees.The minister's clothes were still neat, but he immediately lay on top of me, the belt knot squeezed my back, and I had to lift one hip to make myself more comfortable.My head was also turned to one side, because I wore a loose Shimada hairstyle, with a huge bun hanging down the back that would break if I tried too hard.This posture is of course very uncomfortable, but compared with the uneasiness and anxiety in my heart, my discomfort is nothing to worry about.Suddenly it occurred to me that I had put myself in this predicament, had my mind remained clear?The minister propped himself up on one arm, reached into the kimono and began to grope, fingernails scratching my thigh.Before I had time to think about what I was doing, I pressed his shoulders and pushed him away...but then I thought that Noon would be my danna, there would be no hope in my life, and I drew my hand back and dropped it on the mat.The minister's fingers squirmed up the inside of my thigh.At that moment, I heard the snap of his belt, followed by the hiss of his trousers zipper, and a moment later he was thrusting himself into me.Why did I feel like I was back when I was fifteen again? This feeling strangely echoed Dr. Crab.I even heard myself sobbing.The Minister propped himself up on his elbows, his face against mine, and I could only glimpse him out of the corner of my eye.Looking at it from such a close distance, he protruded his chin towards me. He didn't look like a human, but more like a beast.This is not the worst, because of his protruding chin, his lower lip was filled with saliva like a cup.I don't know if it's because of eating squid guts just now, but there is a kind of gray sticky substance in his saliva, which reminds me of what is left on a cutting board after a fish has been scaled. When I get dressed in the morning, I tuck a few sheets of absorbent rice paper behind my belt.I figured that if I decided to do this, the minister might use them to wipe himself at the end.So far, I've had to use them ahead of time to wipe the drool off my face.But with his weight on my hips, I couldn't reach out and feel the back belt.I tried to take a few low breaths, but I'm afraid the minister misunderstood that I was very excited. In short, he suddenly became energetic, and the saliva from his lips surged out like a stream, which could not be stopped.I can only close my eyes and wait.I was dizzy, as if I were lying on the bottom of a boat, being tossed about on the cusp of a storm, hitting my head against the side of the boat.Suddenly the minister let out a groan and there was a moment of silence while I felt his saliva dripping down my face. I tried to get the rice paper in my belt again, but the minister straddled me, panting, as if he had just finished a race.I was about to push him away when I heard a rustling outside.My revulsion has grown so strong that it almost overwhelms everything.The minister seemed not to know what was going to happen, and he raised his head and looked casually towards the door, as if expecting to see a bird there.Then the door creaked open and the sun poured down on us.I had to squint to make out two figures.One is Pumpkin, and she came to the theater just as I hoped.But the person beside her looking up was not Nobu at all, but the president.